How to Set Up Find My iPhone in iOS 15
If you are new to the iPhone or have never set up your Find My app yet, this can become confusing. While the app used to be called “Find My iPhone,” it is now simply “Find My.” However, using it on your iPhone is an option called “Find My iPhone.” Let’s see how to set that up.
How to Share My Location with Others
Once you’ve enabled Find My, you have a number of options available with iOS 15, including the ability to share your location with friends and family. As soon as this is toggled on, anyone on your Apple Family account can see your location. If you want to expand your location sharing to people in your contact list, you can do that as well. If you want to stop location sharing altogether, it’s very easy to do from inside the Find My app.
How to Track a Lost iPhone
Initially, the best way to locate a missing iPhone is to use the Find My app. You have a few options: making the device play a sound, turn-by-turn directions to its location, adding a message to the lost device asking for it to be returned, lock the device so anyone who finds it cannot access it, and erasing all of the data. In the event you don’t have another Apple device that has the Find My app installed, iCloud.com/find is the next best option. Click on “All Devices,” then select the device you want to put into Lost Mode or lock. Apple doesn’t offer the same set of options here as you will on a device like an iPhone, iPad or Mac. However, between Play Sound, Lock and Erase iPad, you should be able to take the necessary steps to locate a lost device.
How to Use Someone Else’s iPhone to Locate Yours
If your iPhone is lost and you can’t access another device or iCloud.com/find, you can turn to a friend or family member for help.
How to Locate an iPhone that Is Offline
This is perhaps one of the biggest iOS 15 changes to Find My. It’s important to know that the offline feature only works on the iPhone 11 lineup and above. Once this feature is active, you will know it’s available the next time you power down your iPhone and see the message “iPhone Findable After Power Off.”
How to Use Lost Mode
Let’s take a deeper look at “Lost Mode.” Once you activate Lost Mode, a number of steps will happen:
A confirmation email will be sent to your Apple ID email address alerting you to this change. A custom message can be displayed on your iPhone (or iPad).While in Lost Mode, your iPhone will not receive any alerts or notifications outside of phone calls and FaceTime calls. This includes alarms, email notifications, iMessages, etc.Apple Pay is immediately disabled. This extends to any transit and student ID cards as well. Once your device is returned, you can resume using all of your cards after unlocking the device and signing back in with your Apple ID.The location of your device is placed on any iCloud map, including Find My on other Apple devices you own, that of a friend or family member, and iCloud.com/find.
To disable Lost Mode: Do note that should you recover your device, Lost Mode will disable itself as soon as your passcode is entered on the device.
How to Turn Off Find My
While Find My has critical importance to locate a missing device, there may be a time you will want to disable it.
iPhone, iPad and Mac
On any iPhone, iPad or iPod touch, the steps to disabling Find My are all the same: It’s that simple. If you’re on a Mac,
Apple Watch
With an Apple Watch, the most important step to disable Find My is to unpair it from your iPhone. Doing so will erase any contents, remove Activation Lock and delete any payment card information for Apple Pay. To unpair your Apple Watch:
AirPods
With AirPods, the steps are pretty straightforward to remove from your Find My device list. You just need to unpair your AirPods from your Bluetooth settings on all of the devices they are connected to. This could include Apple TV, an iPod, Mac, iPad, etc. On the Mac:
AirTags
Disabling AirTags is just as easy as one might expect, requiring only a few taps to remove them from an Apple ID.
What About Separation Mode?
Another new function of iOS 15 (and iPadOS 15) is the introduction of “Separation Alerts.” The name pretty much explains what this feature will do, but once enabled, your iPhone, Pad, iPod touch, Apple silicon or macOS Monterey hardware will let you know if it’s been left behind. This feature isn’t only for Apple devices, as you can activate Separation Mode for just about anything. In the case of AirTags:
1. Should I attempt to locate a missing iPhone by myself?
This is likely the most important aspect of using Find My. No, you should absolutely not attempt to locate a missing iPhone if it appears to be in a home or office building. Should you have any concerns about where an iPhone may be if it went missing or was stolen, contact local authorities to help.
2. Is it safe to use someone else’s iPhone or iPad to locate my device?
Yes, absolutely. Apple makes sure you are protected by ensuring you are using your Apple ID to help locate your device. Also, make sure you log out after you are done locating your device, and you shouldn’t have any security concerns.
3. If I erase my iPhone thinking it’s lost, can I restore it?
Yes, but only if you have a recent iCloud backup. Just restore your iPhone as you normally would after disabling Lost Mode.
Wrapping Up
Losing your iPhone or any device is a heartbreaking experience. Our devices have become such an integral part of our life that we almost can’t remember what we did before smartphones. Fortunately, Apple has helped develop multiple steps to ensure that in the worst-case scenario, there are built-in protections for its users to locate and recover lost devices. If you just bought a new device, learn how to transfer your data to a new iPhone or iPad.
